By Josh Klemm, International Rivers Co-Director and Oleksii Vasyliuk, co-founder Ukrainian Nature Conservation Group (UNCG). Originally published in the EU Observer. The destruction of the Kakhovka hydropower dam has precipitated the manmade disaster unfolding in Ukraine, the impacts of which will be experienced by the environment and people for generations to come. Dams must not be…
Read MoreInternational Rivers joined 42 organizations in calling on the OECD to ensure Brazil can end deforestation & protect human rights as it considers the nation for membership
Today, October 3rd, a civil society group published and sent a letter to The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and relevant government agencies calling for a careful evaluation of Brazil’s climate and environmental policies, processes, and track records. The letter also highlights the necessity for strong due diligence, including third-party assessments, independent reviews, and…
Read MoreCivil society organizations call on the VP of the Inter-American Development Bank for more transparency and participation in IDB Access to Information Policy
International Rivers joins 23 organizations delivering a letter addressed to Richard Martínez Alvarado, Vice President of theCountries Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) This week, 24 civil society organizations(CSOs) raised concerns about the consultation process designed for IDB’s Access to Information Policy (AIP) review. In the letter, addressed to the Vice President for Countries of the Inter-American…
Read MoreCourt dismissal of Xayaburi dam lawsuit highlights the need to strengthen accountability of cross-border investments
By Phairin Sohsai and Gary Lee On 17 August, the Thai Supreme Administrative Court ruled to dismiss a lawsuit, filed by 37 Thai villagers against five Thai state agencies for their role in approving the Xayaburi hydropower dam’s Power Purchase Agreement (PPA). Filed 10 years ago, the Xayaburi lawsuit was the first community-filed lawsuit related…
Read MoreWeaponising water — Ukraine’s dams are targets in Putin’s war
Originally published in EU Observer by Nicholas Hildyard and Josh Klemm In the early hours of 26 February 2022, Ukrainian air defences shot down a Russian missile reportedly heading for the Kyiv dam on the Dnieper River. The hydropower reservoir behind the dam, which Russian forces had unsuccessfully attempted to seize on the first day…
Read MoreNam Ou River Cascade Hydropower Project
By International Rivers originally published in The People’s Map of Global China Nam Ou River, Lao People’s Democratic Republic The Nam Ou River Cascade Hydropower Project comprises seven dams, with a combined generating capacity of 1.27 GW. The cascade includes two phases. Phase One has been fully operational since October 2016 and Phase Two since…
Read MoreInternational Hydropower Association’s Greenwashing of Nam Theun 2 Dam’s Impacts on Indigenous Peoples
by Bruce Shoemaker and Ian G. Baird A newly released article by the International Hydropower Association (IHA), titled “Laos: Hydropower built in consultation with Indigenous communities” by Eduard Wojczynski, holds up the Nam Theun 2 (NT2) hydropower project as a positive example of benefit-sharing for Indigenous communities. The article is presented as a case study…
Read MorePRESS RELEASE | COP26: UN human rights experts highlight continued human rights impacts of dams as civil society, Indigenous leaders call for UN climate financing mechanisms to exclude hydropower
For Immediate Release: November 9, 2021 For Spanish: https://intlrv.rs/3C4CUOS For Portuguese: https://intlrv.rs/3qoyD6A Glasgow, Scotland – As negotiators convened at COP26 in Glasgow attempt to break the deadlock on emissions cuts and financing mechanisms, a diverse set of voices are calling for the UNFCCC to exclude hydropower from consideration, citing dams’ grave human rights and climate…
Read MoreOrganizações da sociedade civil questionam ‘Política Verde’ do Pará na COP 26
Documento redigido por organizações nacionais e internacionais será entregue para paísesque estão em negociação de subsídios para o Estado do Norte, como o Reino Unido e aNoruega. Brasil, 4 de novembro de 2021 – Organizações que atuam na defesa do meio ambiente elaboraram um alerta aosfinanciadores internacionais que negociam um acordo com o governo do…
Read MoreCOP15: for China to achieve its ecological goals, SOEs must improve their biodiversity footprint
Originally published in South China Morning Post By Zhang Jingjing and Darryl Knudsen Chinese state-owned enterprises dominate the dam construction industry and are behind some of the world’s largest mining deals Beijing must now take bold action to curb its ecological footprint overseas. SOEs themselves need to adopt clear policies that exclude harmful projects This week,…
Read MorePRESS RELEASE | New Report: Biodiversity loss driven by world’s largest dam builders poses a major challenge for China’s global biodiversity footprint
For Immediate Release: October 13, 2021 Contacts: Josh Klemm, Policy Director, International Rivers/Report Author, +1 202 492 8904 jklemm@internationalrivers.org Bonnie Barclay, Communications Manager, International Rivers, +1 323 363 4874, bbarclay@internationalrivers.org Oakland, CA – International Rivers today published a report calling attention to the need for the world’s largest dam building companies to take urgent steps…
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